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Monday, April 26, 2010

Our Monday night dinner was some curried red lentils, a whole grain roll, and salad. This sort of thing is a pretty typical dinner in our house because it's quick and quite filling. My significant other can be a picky eater sometimes, but I'll give him this: he loves leafy greens and legumes. So when I keep it simple, it's pretty easy to get a healthy meal into him. We love collards both raw and cooked, so I often use them as an ingredient in a mixed green salad. This time, we had them both ways: in the salad as well as some lightly sauteed to top the lentils.

This is really basic food, and of course is very flexible and easy to adjust to varying tastes...here is an approximate recipe of what I threw it together...

Sweat off the red chili flakes, onion, garlic, carrot, celery, parsley, and bay leaves in a little oil or water until it becomes a little tender, add in the cumin, coriander, and curry and continue to saute for another couple of minutes. Add the tomato paste and stir to combine. Add the red lentils and water/veggie broth, bring to a simmer and then reduce heat and allow to simmer gently for 25-30 minutes, stirring occasionally and adding water/broth as necessary to create the desired consistency. Add salt and pepper to taste. Top with some lightly sauteed collards and toasted cumin seeds.

A squeeze of fresh lemon juice and some diced fresh tomatoes would be nice additions too.

Rose, I'd be up for dinner at your house ANY night! Are reservations required? :-) We love simple yet hearty meals like this and have them often. Like Ali, I rarely buy fresh collard greens - I rarely SEE fresh collard greens around here. But I love collards, and buy them frozen a lot to enjoy in soups. I'll keep my beady eyes peeled for fresh ones again this summer.